SENATE MEMORIAL 24

52nd legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 2016

INTRODUCED BY

Michael Padilla

A MEMORIAL

REQUESTING THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH TO DETERMINE THE FEASIBILITY OF IMPLEMENTATION OF THE RISK AND RESILIENCY ASSESSMENT PROJECT FOR STUDENTS STATEWIDE.

     WHEREAS, every two years, public high school and middle school students from throughout New Mexico provide information about their health behaviors by participation in the New Mexico youth risk and resiliency survey; and

     WHEREAS, the New Mexico youth risk and resiliency survey was created to gather input from students about behaviors that present health risks, including alcohol and drug use, tobacco use, sexual activity and thoughts of suicide and suicide attempts, and health issues, such as body weight and asthma; and

     WHEREAS, the survey is conducted by the department of health and the public education department and includes participation from nearly every school district, covering more than three hundred schools and thirty thousand students; and

     WHEREAS, New Mexico is one of the few states that also collects information about resiliency factors, such as relationships in the family, school and community and with peers; and

     WHEREAS, the risk and resiliency assessment project for students was developed collaboratively with Albuquerque high school students over a two-year period, from 2012 through 2013, to include input from youth on how to understand and make use of public health data from the New Mexico youth risk and resiliency survey; and

     WHEREAS, students and adults who participate in the risk and resiliency assessment project gain a deeper understanding of adolescent health issues in their schools and communities; and

     WHEREAS, students learn how to analyze data, gain leadership skills and become experienced facilitators and connect with school and community groups to form partnerships; and

     WHEREAS, adult perceptions of youth in their communities improved with participation in the risk and resiliency assessment project; and

     WHEREAS, historically, participants have rarely engaged in analysis and interpretation of the health data they provide; and

     WHEREAS, input from young people has been largely absent from research, program development and policymaking that comes about from health surveys, such as the New Mexico youth risk and resiliency survey; and

     WHEREAS, the risk and resiliency assessment project for students attempts to address this oversight by providing students the opportunity to analyze the most recent data from their schools or communities, to present those data to community members and to advocate on behalf of their peers and communities; and

     WHEREAS, the ultimate goal of the risk and resiliency assessment project for students is for young people to make positive changes in New Mexico schools and communities; and

     WHEREAS, to reach that goal, it is proposed that the risk and resiliency assessment project for students be established as a statewide program; and

     WHEREAS, the risk and resiliency assessment project for student participants collaborated with the university of New Mexico prevention research center to develop a full curriculum and project manual, which are ready for statewide dissemination; and

      WHEREAS, the department of health's office of school and adolescent health has the existing infrastructure through school-based health centers and the natural helpers programs compatible with the implementation of the risk and resiliency assessment project statewide;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the department of health be requested to determine the feasibility of implementation of the risk and resiliency assessment project for students statewide; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the department of health report its findings and recommendations to the legislative education study committee by November 1, 2016; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the partners of the risk and resiliency assessment project for students, the secretary of health, the secretary of public education, the chair of the legislative education study committee and the president of the university of New Mexico.

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